The Good Daughter — Stella MacLean

Paige Clarke is a good daughter: a choice made early in her life out of her love for her adoptive parents. She spent her life being what she believed they wanted her to be; a nurse and a devoted daughter who abandoned her personal choices to gain their love.Yet, being a good daughter carries with it the seeds of silent discontent. Her adoptive mother taught her to not take a risk, always look before you leap, all the adages of a quiet, uncomplicated life.These admonitions led her to feel inferior, to not trust her judgment, especially when it came to the dangers of having children around. An idea that was proven correct one day when the child Paige was babysitting became ill.This incident and her mother's anxiety led her to believe she shouldn't have children.And when her boyfriend Tony Phillips asked her to marry him, talking incessantly about the children they'd have, she felt forced to reject his proposal on the grounds that she couldn't overcome her fear of children.When her adoptive mother dies she learns she has a sister in trouble, a niece in need of a loving home, and her birth mother in need of care. Desperate for a family of her own, Paige jumps into the situation without a thought.But once she's involved, she discovers she needs the kind of help only Tony can give her. He knows what finding her birth family means to her. But Tony's ability to help her is hampered by his commitment to his son from another marriage.Yet, their love draws them into each other's lives, paving the way for compromise and the need to create a loving world all of their own making.